Maryland Live Casino begins 24-hour operation Thursday

Maryland Live Casino will open Thursday at 8 a.m. and, according to officials, "never close again."

The Hanover facility, located adjacent to the Arundel Mills Mall, is the only one of the state's three casinos that requested full-time operation from the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Commission.

The passing of Question 7 during the November election made it legal for casinos in the state to operate 24 hours a day. Maryland Live had previous closed at 2 a.m. on weeknights and 4 a.m. on weekends.

Hollywood Casino, in Perryville, and Ocean Downs, outside Ocean City, plan to stay open overnight on weekends only, for now. Hollywood, owned by Penn National, may begin to stay open 24 hours once it can get table games installed in early 2013. Ocean Downs management is still devising a plan to renovate the facility to accommodate table games and does not have a timeline for their introduction.

Maryland Live, owned and operated by the Cordish Cos., has generated about 80 percent of all casino revenue in the state for the current fiscal year, and brought in $34.4 million in November, 67 percent of which goes to the state.

President and general manager Rob Norton said this month that the casino felt it could generate enough business to begin all-day operations on the first date allowed by the state. Norton said the casino could begin offering table games such as poker and blackjack by March.